---

[Focus]

---

Building a Custom Application with ADOMD.NET
Draw upon your ADO.NET skills to start using ADOMD.NET
 — William Sheldon

---

[Features]

---

Automate SQL Server Error Log Checking
Use this custom solution to check error logs in a mixed SQL Server 2005 and SQL Server 2000 environment.
 — Richard Ding


Sharpen Your SQL Server Skills
Pick up 7 basic query analysis rules from Dave.
 — Pinalkumar Dave


SSIS Logging and Data Auditing
Use Business Intelligence Development Studio (BIDS) to customize package logging.
 — Tyler Chessman


T-SQL 101: Built-In Functions
T-SQL offers three types of built-in functions, including scalar functions. Scalar functions let you perform a wide variety of operations, such as retrieving dates and replacing strings, with only a few lines of code.
 — Bill McEvoy

---

[Editorial]

---

SQL Server 2008: Which Edition’s Right for You?
How can you help your organization choose the edition of SQL Server 2008 it needs? Michael Otey takes a quick tour through the options that are available.
 — Michael Otey

---

[Reader to Reader]

---

Evaluate Index Usage in Databases
Here's a T-SQL stored procedure that you can use to identify tables without indexes, indexes that aren't being used, and indexes that aren't being used efficiently.
 — Shaunt Khaldtiance


Find Weak Database Passwords
Use this password-cracking tool to check the complexity of the passwords being used for SQL Server database logins.
 — Eli Leiba


Update Rows in Large Tables Without Locking Out Users
You can use the TOP clause to limit the transaction size, but there's a trick to using it: You need to keep track of which rows have already been updated so that you don’t update them a second time. Here's how to keep track of the rows.
 — Readers

---

[T-SQL Black Belt]

---

Query Temporal Data
Learn how to handle temporal data in SQL Server queries despite limited support.
 — Itzik Ben-Gan

---

[New Products]

---

New Products
Check out new and improved SQL Server–related products from PROPHIX Software, AVIcode, Panorama Software, and Embarcadero Technologies.
 — Editors

---

[SELECT TOP(X)]

---

SQL Server Backup Best Practices
Reduce the stress of performing a system restore—follow these SQL Server best practices.
 — Michael Otey

---

[Tool Time with Kevin Kline]

---

mRemote
Find and organize your server connections using this open-source remote connections manager.
 — Kevin Kline

---

[Review]

---

SQL Compare 6.2
See why the author gives a thumbs-up to the new version.
 — Michael K. Campbell

SQL Nitro 2.0
This product can improve the performance of your SQL Server systems if they're constrained by network bandwidth.
 — Michael Otey

---

[PTO for the Rest of Us]

---

Generating Server-Side Traces
In creating a server-side trace, your goal is to capture the events you're interested in and store them in on a locally attached disk on the server. Use these T-SQL commands to accomplish that goal.
 — Andrew J. Kelly

---

[Sqlmag.com Community Dialog]

---

Cloud Computing Comes to SQL Server
Sound off about what cloud computing means for your SQL Server career and share your insights about improving database application performance.
 — Anne Grubb